Emergency unit delay

Fears staffing issues may hold up opening for months

A NEW emergency medical unit at the Royal Hobart Hospital will not be open for the busy holiday period, and unions are concerned it may not open for months.

The unit was originally supposed to be a Mental Health Observation Unit, however doctors and nurses did not believe it would be fit for purpose.

Two days before it was scheduled to open on December 11, Health Minister Michael Ferguson announced the unit would instead be an emergency medical unit to help alleviate the pressure on the RHH’s emergency department.

Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation state secretary Emily Shepherd said she understood there were issues staffing the unit, however, it had been hoped that staff recruited for the Mental Health Observation Unit would be able to fill the roles.

She said it was a concern the emergency medical unit wasn’t open before Christmas because the view was it would alleviate bed block and assist patient flow throughout the hospital.

“We understand from members that they have been informed the new emergency medical unit potentially wouldn’t be opened until March or April in 2018,” Ms Shepherd said.

It comes after the Legislative Council inquiry into acute health services in Tasmania released its interim report, finding that overcrowded emergency departments in the state’s public hospitals increased the risk of “negative patient outcomes”. There are also fears that the closure of Hobart’s only private mental health care hospital, St Helen’s, for two weeks over the Christmas period could place extra pressure on the RHH.

Health and Community Services Union state secretary Tim Jacobson said bed flow inside the RHH and patient flow from the ED would be affected.

“We’re going into the busy summer period, and I think we’re all sort of holding our breath to see what happens there,” he said. A spokesman for the Tas

manian Health Service said the recruitment process was under way for permanent staffing of the unit.

“While that occurs, beds will be used flexibly as needed to meet demand,” he said.

Mr Ferguson said the beds would open as soon as the unit could be staffed and minor capital works were complete.

“It’s incredibly disappointing but not surprising that Labor-aligned HACSU are trying to play politics with this serious issue.”